Three's a Crowd
by HighRoadS2
Summary: Grissom and Sara go on a business trip to San Francisco hoping to escape from the office for a while, but unluckily for them, an uninvited guest tags along. Later, Sara meets up with an old colleague. Will Griss and Sara's romance survive this trip? WIP.
1. Introduction

**Story Name:** Three's a Crowd

**Summary:** Grissom and Sara go on a business trip to San Franciso hoping to escape from the office for a while, but unluckily for them, an uninvited guest tags along. While there, Sara meets up with an old colleague. Will Griss and Sara's romance survive this trip? GSR.

_First off, I'd like to thank_ JavaJunkie-GSR_ for all her help. Without her, this story would not exist. Thank you so much!_

_And to all you readers: I hope you like it! I think this will probably be my best CSI fic so far, but I guess I'll just have to wait and see! Oh, and I know this chapter is really short, but it's just the introduction, so I promise the real chapters will be longer. As stated in the summary, the rating may change to M in the very near future. Don't forget to review!_

* * *

"Gil! I'd like to see you in my office, please." Gil Grissom looked up from his cup of coffee to see Conrad Ecklie standing in the doorway of the break room. 

"Ok…" Gil set his cup down. "But Ecklie, what is this abou—" he started, then realized that Ecklie had already gone. Gil glanced around at the five astonished faces around him. "I'll be back." he told his CSIs, then left the break room quickly.

"Griss, wait." Sara caught up to him in the hallway. "You don't think Ecklie found out about… you know…" Sara made a faint gesture at the two of them, and suddenly Gil understood.

"No. He couldn't have. There's no way he knows." Gil put his hand on Sara's shoulder, reassuring her. She nodded at him, still slightly unconvinced.

"You'll tell me if… well, if that's what it is though, right?"

"Of course." he looked at her a moment longer, feeling as if this would be the last time he would see her, then turned and walked away.

"Dan Collins called this morning." Ecklie said as Gil sat down in the black leather chair across from Ecklie's desk.

"Dan Collins from the San Francisco Crime Lab?" Gil asked him, sitting forward. Dan usually only called when he needed a favor from them.

"Yes. He needs an entomologist for a case and asked for you specifically. I told him you'd be there."

Gil sighed in relief. This wasn't about him and Sara. "When do I leave?"

Ecklie checked his watch. "Your plane takes off at three."

"Three o'clock this _morning_?" Gil glanced at the clock. Midnight.

"Yes. You'll probably want to go home and pack, so I suggest you leave now."

Gil rolled his eyes. Of course he would leave now. Only an asshole like Ecklie would wait until the last minute to tell Gil he was leaving in three hours. But what about Sara? He couldn't just leave her this suddenly for who knows how long. "Hey, Ecklie? Do you think I could bring one of my CSIs? As an… assistant?" Hopefully he would buy that.

Ecklie stared at him for a moment. "Who were you thinking?" he leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest.

"Sara Sidle."

"Why her?"

"Lately Sara has shown interest in the field of entomology. I think this would be a good introduction into that line of work for her." It wasn't really a lie. Sara _had_ helped him with some insect-related experiments recently. Even if she didn't really enjoy bugs, Gil thought she might enjoy coming to San Francisco with him, away from the watchful eyes of those at the office.

"Alright. She can come." Gil was surprised. He wasn't sure if he really expected Ecklie to agree.

"Thank you. I'll let her know." Gil got up from the chair and started out the door.

"Oh, and tell her to meet us outside the lab at one-thirty."

Gil whipped back around. "Us? Why both of us?"

"Didn't I tell you?" Ecklie said. "I'm going too."


	2. Chapter 1

_Ok, here's chapter 1! From now on, I will be adding a new chapter every Friday. Thanks again to_ JavaJunkie-GSR_, and don't forget to review!_

* * *

Gil Grissom stepped into the air conditioned motel lobby and looked around. Cheap. Dated. Unorganized. He could think of about a dozen other adjectives to describe that state of the building he was standing in, but he didn't bother. His mind was still spinning from the contents of the past five hours. 

"Grissom, do you really think this is a good idea?" Sara put her hand on the small of Gil's back and whispered into his ear. Gil looked quickly at the receptionist desk, where Ecklie was checking them in, to make sure he was not watching them. As a precaution, Gil moved her hand from his back, then smiled at her apologetically.

"Well, do you want my honest opinion?" he cocked an eyebrow at her.

Sara stared at him incredulously.

"I'm kidding, honey. We can make this work." Gil smiled at her and she hit him playfully. "Even if that means sneaking out late at night."

"I'm up for that." she winked at him.

Ecklie walked back toward the pair. "Ok, I tried to get us another room, since we only have two reserved, and it turns out that they are completely booked for the next month, there's no chance of getting another." Gil stole a hopeful glance at Sara. "So," Ecklie continued, "I figured, Sara, since you are the only woman here, Gil and I will bunk together and you came have the other room to yourself."

_What?_

Gil had to keep himself from falling over. Ecklie wanted to share a room with him? _Oh, God._ But there was no way he could convince Ecklie to let him and Sara share a room together without him getting suspicious.

Gil looked at Sara and saw that she was trying to keep herself from laughing.

"Are you two ok with that?" Gil realized he still hadn't answered Ecklie.

"Uh, yes. I'm sure… we'll manage." he replied. Sara was now coughing to cover up her giggles.

"Alright, then I'll meet you in the room. Both are on the first floor—" he checked his receipt, "—rooms one-twenty and one-twenty-one. Ecklie handed Gil and Sara each a room key and strode off toward the door.

"So I suppose we should get our bags?" Gil said to Sara.

"I suppose so." Sara tried not to smile.

"What's so funny?" Gil asked her, frowning.

"It's just…" Sara snickered, "The thought of you and Ecklie, two grown men who are rivals in the office, sharing a motel room together."

"Well I'm glad you find this all amusing, but I for one am perturbed at the fact that I have to sleep in the same room as that man."

"Maybe we can change that?" Sara said suggestively.

"There is no way Ecklie will let us share a room," Gil frowned, "I mean, unless we—"

"I'm not suggesting we tell him about us. I mean… Let's do what you said before."

"Sneak out after Ecklie falls asleep? Hun, I was only joking."

"Well, I'm not." Sara cocked an eyebrow at him. "C'mon Griss, what could we lose?"

Gil looked at her wryly. "You mean besides our dignity? Our secrecy? Our—"

"Ok, ok," she cut him off. "But that's only if we get caught. Tell me, why did you ask me to come with you on this trip?"

"Because I… I didn't want to be away from you for two weeks."

Sara smiled. "And we won't be able to spend time together alone when we're working the case or when we're with Ecklie, so that only leaves after dark."

Gil sighed, then looked into Sara's eyes. "You have a way with words, Miss Sidle."

She smiled at him. "So it's a 'Yes', then?"

"No, it's a 'Let's try this and hope to God we don't get caught'."

"Works for me."

They had chosen a local Italian restaurant for dinner, one which Sara claimed had the best food in the city. The three had been eating in an awkward silence for almost twenty minutes when Ecklie tried to make polite conversation.

"I… uh… got an email last week saying that the state of Nevada might revise the inter-office dating laws. Although I'm not sure why they're even bothering… people defy those laws all the time." Ecklie looked up at Gil and Sara, who were sitting across from him. When neither said anything, he continued. "I, for one, do not condone any sort of inter-office relationships. They throw everything off. What do you two think?"

Gil was trying not to look at Sara, and he had a feeling she was doing the same.

"I think that people should be able to do what they want, with who they want." Sara spoke up suddenly. Both Gil and Ecklie stared at her. "I mean, if you're in love… there's really no helping that, is there?" She looked to Gil for support, but he was speechless.

"But what if two people, who, not only work together but are seeing each other break up?" Ecklie asked her. "Then everyone else gets screwed over."

"Not necessarily," Sara shot back. "If the two are able to resolve their issues and not let it mess everyone else up, then wouldn't that work out just fine?"

"What if they can't work their issues out?" Sara and Ecklie had now forgotten their meals, and Gil sat watching them, wanting to jump in and back Sara up, yet at the same time wanting to disappear, because if both of them opposed Ecklie on this subject – this subject of all subjects – he would most definitely suspect them of being guilty of the crime in question – if you could call it a crime.

"Only two irresponsible, unprofessional people would not be able to let the office be unaffected by their relationship. And for that matter, what if they don't break up? I would think only an inter-office fling would cause real waves, while a full-on, grown-up relationship where the two people actually love each other would not affect anyone else at all. Especially if they're able to hide their relationship."

"I don't think hiding their relationship would solve anything."

"Why not?" Sara snapped.

"Well, even if the couple hides their relationship from those at the office, they could still be guilty of compromising cases or evidence for their partner." Sara's mouth dropped open and Ecklie sat back, folding his arms across his chest and smirking.

"What are you saying, Ecklie?" Sara's eyes had turned ice cold.

"Oh, nothing, I guess. I mean, except for the fact that we – those at the Las Vegas Crime Lab – have already seen evidence compromised as a result of a workplace relationship."

Gil knew that both he and Sara were remembering the Tom Haviland case, in which evidence had been compromised when Hank – Sara's boyfriend (Gil cringed at the thought of him) at the time – moved a piece of evidence and caused Sara a load of trouble in court. For a moment he thought Sara would get up walk out of the restaurant, but was surprised to see her stand her ground.

"You know that case was not compromised as the direct result of my relationship with Hank Peddigrew."

"I know it wasn't direct. But it definitely affected the outcome."

"That could have happened to anyone! I just happened to be the one working on the case. It was pure coincidence."

Ecklie and Sara stared at each other for another moment. "You seem to feel very strongly about this subject, Sidle." Gil noticed her turn a faint shade of pink.

"I just think that two people who love each other should be able to be together, unaffected by any laws saying that they can't."

Ecklie nodded faintly at her, then turned toward Gil. "And what is your opinion on this matter, Gil?"

Gil was surprised. "I… I agree with Sara."

"Yeah… I knew you would." Ecklie looked at the two of them accusingly, then shook his head, as if denying a thought. "I guess it's time to leave, then?"

Gil and Sara nodded, and got up to leave. _This is going to be an interesting night._ Gil thought; after the previous conversation the consequences of getting caught sneaking out would be so much worse.


	3. Chapter 2

_First of all, I'm sorry I didn't update yesterday! I really didn't have any time. But here is chapter 2! As you may have noticed, the rating has changed to M for some mild smut content, so if that's not your thing, I apologize. The rating may be changed back anyway - I'm not sure yet. But don't worry, it really doesn't dominate this chapter._

_Anyways, thanks for reading!_

* * *

It had taken almost two hours for Ecklie to finally drift off to sleep. As Gil quietly slipped out of their shared room he hoped Sara would still be awake. After all, he hadn't suffered through seeing his colleague in his plaid pajamas for nothing. 

Gil rapped lightly on Sara's door, shivering slightly in the late night cool. It was silent for a moment, then he heard some sort of shuffling and slowly Sara opened the door, clad in a deep red silk robe. She gave him a dazzling smile. "I wondered when you'd come."

"I'm sorry, Sweetheart. I was… held up." His voice was husky with need as he gazed at her long, lean form. It was all he could do to keep from ripping her robe off then and there. Sara nodded her forgiveness, took the front of his shirt, and pulled him inside. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he wrapped his own around her waist. He wondered what she was thinking as her gaze drifted over his face, but after pondering this for a moment Gil couldn't just stand there anymore. He hadn't snuck out of his room to just stare at her.

Gil brought one hand up and tilted her chin up, then dipped his mouth and caught her lips with his own. At first, he kissed her gently, reveling in how sweet she tasted, but then his kiss became more powerful and he backed her up until the back of her knees hit the bed. He then propped one of his knees on the bed and slowly lowered her down to the flowered comforter. Sara's hands were still entwined around the back of his neck, and she pulled his head down so she could kiss him again.

Gil moved his hands slowly from her back to the front of her robe, and he began to untie the small ribbon that was the only thing that kept the thin red cloth from falling off her. He groaned as he pushed it off her, as he saw that she was wearing nothing underneath. Gil looked up at Sara and caught her mischievous expression. He smiled.

Dawn rose early the next morning, stretching its yellow rays across the two figures lying in the queen-sized bed, tangled in each other. Gil woke as the sun splattered across his face, and he felt something pressing against his chest and opened his eyes. Sara rested there, her hair a crown of light as the morning sun shone against her. Gil kissed the top of her head and wrapped his arm around her as she stirred. He rubbed her arm and she looked up at him, still groggy with sleep. Smiling, Sara brought her head up and rested instead on his should, her eyelashes grazing his neck every time she blinked.

"Sneaking out last night…" Gil began, "Definitely worth it."

Sara responded by kissing his neck, dropping kisses from his collar bone to his chin, then up to his welcoming mouth. He kissed her fully, enjoying this sort of freedom he felt.

Sara pulled away abruptly, and Gil's eyes flew open. "What's wrong?" he asked, searching her face.

"Do you have any idea what time Ecklie wakes up in the morning?" Sara asked quickly.

Gil gave her a wry look. "Why would I—" he froze, Sara still entwined in his arms. "Oh, Shit."

Gil was out of the bed and dressed before he had a chance to think of an excuse for Ecklie, assuming he would need one.

"I'm really sorry, Sara," he said in between pulling his shoes on.

"Sorry for what?" she asked, still in bed, eyeing him hungrily.

"For rushing out on you like this," he opened the door, "I just don't want… You know." He gave her an apologetic smile and left the room, closing the door softly behind him.

Gil stepped across the cold cement between the two rooms and opened the door to his quietly. He peaked in, but saw no sign of Ecklie. Then, suddenly, he heard the shower start. Gil sighed. Ecklie knew that Gil hadn't been there when the former woke up.

Gil sat on the edge of his bed and ran his fingers through his hair, then lay back, staring up at the ceiling. What would he tell Ecklie? That he had gone to the store? The store for what, though? Gil knew he didn't have much time as he heard the shower switch off again.

Gil glanced around the room, hoping for an idea. Then he saw his tennis shows lying beside his bed. _Perfect!_ He thought, and slipped them on. Gil then opened the small fridge that was also next to his bed and took a water bottle out. He opened it quickly, glancing toward the bathroom door, and poured some water into his hands. He wiped his face with it, then took the whole water bottle and poured most of the water left onto the front of his shirt. He smiled, admiring his work. He heard the bathroom door open and shoved the bottle back into the fridge, then stood up and pretended to wipe the fake sweat off his forehead.

"Oh, hey. Look who's back." Ecklie said as he walked into the room.

Gil looked up. "Yeah, I went running. I probably should have warned you last night that I'd be gone when you woke up."

"No problem. I should probably be running too." Ecklie replied. "Do you go every morning?"

"Uh… yeah, actually. Every morning."

"Great! Do you think I could come with you from now on? I feel more motivated to exercise if I do it with someone." Ecklie looked so hopeful that Gil nearly said yes, but caught himself.

"Sorry, but I… um… don't like running with others. It throws my pace off." Ecklie's face fell and Gil almost felt sorry for him.

"Ok, well maybe I'll just try it by myself and see how it works out." Gil nodded at him.

"I'm going to go see how close Sidle is to being ready to leave," said Ecklie. "You can go ahead and…" he gestured toward Gil's fake-sweat soaked shirt, "get cleaned up." And with that, Ecklie left the room.

Gil fell back on his bed again, his heart thumping. It had worked. His plan had worked! He sat up, smiling, proud of himself.

Maybe this whole sharing-a-room-with-Ecklie thing would work out after all.


	4. Chapter 3

_So this is the chapter where you are introduced to a new character in this fic, and I might change the summary to fit this new factor as well. This is also the chapter where the actual case is finally introduced. :0P Thanks for reading!_

* * *

The bright turquoise waters of San Francisco Bay shimmered in the early morning sunlight. Gil stepped out of the black Tahoe and gazed up at the massive cream colored beach house that towered before him. It sat directly above the bay, looking out across the water. _Amazing _view, he thought as he noticed the San Francisco Bay Bridge just below. 

"You ready?" Gil said to Sara, who had come to stand next to him. She nodded her response and they started toward the house, Ecklie in tail. Gil still wasn't sure why Ecklie had come on this trip with them, but he knew Ecklie had mentioned something about observing their work.

The three stepped carefully under the yellow crime taped draped around the yard and across the perfect green grass. They entered the beach house and were immediately met by a young detective in the front hallway.

"CSIs from Vegas, I presume?" he said to them, eyeing their vests.

"Yes," replied Grissom. "I'm Gil Grissom, this is Sara Sidle, and this—" he motioned toward Ecklie, "—is Conrad Ecklie. He'll be observing the work done here today."

"Well, we're glad to have you. I'm Ben Mason." They shook hands. "Ok, the body's out back." He began to lead them through the house. "Sorry this was such short notice, but we were in desperate need of an entomologist and since you, Dr. Grissom, were not only the closest but one of the best in your field, we figured that you were the obvious best choice."

"Well, it's no problem, detective. We're glad to be of assistance." Gil forced a smile: He hated it when people sucked up to him.

Mason led the CSIs through the large French doors to the backyard, but Gil could smell the corpse before see could see it. The stench hit him with a big whoosh as they stepped onto the back deck, and though the stench was revolting, Gil welcomed it: He hadn't worked on a maggot-infested body in some time.

"Where is it, detective?" Gil asked Mason, glancing around for any signs of a body but finding none.

"It's… uh… under us, actually." Gil saw Sara look quickly down at her feet, as if she was expecting to find herself standing on a dead body. "Under the deck. It explains why she wasn't found earlier… someone hid her." Gil nodded his understanding and he, Mason and Ecklie started down the deck steps, but Gil stopped halfway down and turned around.

"Sara, are you coming?" he asked her, cocking an eyebrow. It was unlike Sara to hesitate when it came to a case, but he had a feeling she wasn't so sure about getting anywhere near the body. She had never really liked insects.

"Do you really need me?" her voice wavered, and she almost looked nervous.

"I do." Sara hesitated for a moment, but then rejoined them.

"You'll have the assistance of one other CSI. He's from the San Francisco Crime Lab." Mason told them as they stepped onto the grass. "His name is—"

"Sara?" said a voice from behind the group. Gil and Sara both whipped around and found a tall, fair-haired, blue-eyed man standing under the deck behind them.

"Eric!" Sara looked as if she was in shock, for she just stared at the man – Eric – for at least a minute. Gil's mind raced, and he searched for any memory he had of this man, of a time that Sara had mentioned him, something… But he could remember nothing of the sort.

Sara had evidently realized that she and Eric were being stared at by three others, for she began to explain, "Uh, Grissom, Ecklie, this is Eric Lachlan. I worked with him when I lived in San Francisco." she sounded hesitant, as if she was trying to choose her words carefully. "And Eric, this is Gil Grissom. He's my supervisor at the Las Vegas Crime Lab." An emotion of what Gil thought was resentment flashed across Lachlan's face when he noticed Gil standing there. Gil was sure the same emotion had also played across his own features.

"Right, well…" Mason started, "now that everyone is introduced, we should probably get started." He glanced uneasily between Gil and Lachlan.

"Yes. That's probably a good idea." Eric found his voice first. The four of them and the detective ducked under the deck and walked toward the body. Gil couldn't believe how much he disliked Lachlan already. He knew it was for the simple fact that Sara had had such a reaction toward Eric upon seeing him, and Gil could tell from that that there was a bigger story behind the two than that they just worked together while Sara lived in San Francisco.

"… And that's when a neighbor called the police," Mason was saying. "The only suspect we have right now is the maid. The maid's here twice a week, but we can't confirm whether or not she was here the day of the murder, as we don't know when she died. That's why you're here, Dr. Grissom." he finished, and met Gil's eyes briefly. Gil nodded his assent.

"What's her name and background, detective?" he asked Mason, focusing now on the task at hand.

"Uh, let's see," the young man opened a notebook he had been holding and skimmed through a few pages. "Her name is Danica Lewis. She's a bartender at The Last Realm, and has a boyfriend named Ian Byers. We haven't been able to track down the boyfriend yet, as he wasn't at his apartment, but there's a message on Danica's answering machine from him saying that he'd be home in two days, which is now tomorrow."

"Thank you." Gil nodded at Sara and Ecklie, and the three circled the body, looking for any obvious evidence on her. "Your guys have already collected evidence?" Gil asked Mason.

"Yeah, yesterday. It's all back at the lab if you want to have a look. You might be able to help out in that area if you would like. You have knowledge that surpasses the San Fran Lab greatly, since you come from one of the top labs in the country. Your expertise would be more than welcome here." Gil nodded again and continued looking at the body, making note of the several different types of insects.

"Pupa stage already," Gil murmured to himself. "That means about… seven, eight days? Hey, Mason?"

The detective had been gazing about, not really focused on anything. "Yes?" he said, startled.

"How's the weather been for the past week here?"

Mason looked confused. "Pretty nice… a couple days ago it was near a hundred. Why?"

"The lifespan of a blowfly depends on the weather, above all. If it's been hot for the past few days, then we only have about two days left to figure out when Danica was brought here, since the blowfly's life will end after ten days." He paused and looked up at Mason, "I'm surprised you haven't brought her back to the lab yet."

"We considered it," Mason said quickly, "but figured that if we moved the body it might mess up the insect timeline."

Gil nodded, impressed. "Well, now that I'm here, can we get her back to the lab?"

"Yes, right away sir." The detective went off to call a coroner.

"Do you need any of us to do anything?" Sara asked Gil, and he looked up at her.

"Not right now. I will once we're back at the lab, though."

"Should we head there, then?"

Gil glanced at Mason, who nodded. "Yes. Go ahead and head back toward the car. I'll be there in a minute."

Sara, Eric and Ecklie left Gil and the detective alone, and Gil took this opportunity to examine the body some more. There was definitely larva and some new blowfly eggs, but nothing over eight days old. He stood slowly and saw Mason hang up. "The coroner is on his way. The body should be at the lab in about a half hour." Gil thanked him and went back up the deck steps and into the house, but paused before entering the main hall from the kitchen: He had heard Sara's voice.

"… I don't know if that's a good idea, Eric. There's so much going on right now, I just—"

"C'mon, Sar," Lachlan cut her off. "It's just dinner. I'm not asking you to marry me or anything." Gil shifted uncomfortably. _Dinner?_

"I'll think about it." Sara sounded unsure of her answer. There was a short pause, and then—

"It's that Grissom guy, isn't it?" Gil sucked in a breath.

"What? Why would you bring him into this?" Sara said quickly.

"Just think about dinner, Hun." Gil cringed at the endearment. He heard Lachlan's footsteps heading back down the hallway toward the front door. Gil chose this moment to reveal himself. Sara looked up and met his grief-stricken eyes as he stepped out of the kitchen. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but stopped. Gil shook his head and walked past her toward the now open front door, confused even more about the relationship between Sara Sidle and Eric Lachlan.


	5. Chapter 4

_Woohoo! Chapter four! I'm so nervous for Season 8! Just think, this time next week we'll know whether Sara lives or... doesn't. (Let's all hope she does!)_

_Here's to Sara living!_

* * *

Gil had actually debated whether or not to go over to Sara's room. He had lain in his bed, listening to Ecklie's breaths become deeper and farther apart, and had replayed the conversation he had witnessed in his head over and over again. Sara and Eric obviously had some sort of past, deeper than coworkers and deeper than friendship. Gil sighed heavily and made his decision.

Getting up slowly and quietly, he made his way out of the room and out into the dark night. He glanced up at the full moon and bright stars that animated the San Franciscan night and told himself that needed to get to the bottom of this. Gil was sick of guessing.

He knocked softly on Sara's door, his heart pounding. Would she even want to see him? He could only hope.

Sara's door opened slowly and a tall, dark figure appeared at the door. The moonlight hit Sara's face as the door opened all the way and right away he saw the grief in her eyes. She looked up at him, and then quickly averted her gaze. "Hi," her voice was barely above a whisper.

"Hey," he wanted to step forward and wrap her in his arms, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. "Can I come in?" Gil willed Sara to look at him, but she was still looking everywhere but him.

"Sure," she replied, and stepped back into the room. He closed the door behind them. For a few long moments they stood there in silence. Gil tried to think of something – anything – to say, but couldn't find anything that sounded right. Then, suddenly –

"I'm sorry," Sara said, looking at him straight on.

"Sorry for what?" Gil couldn't find anything else to say.

"F—For today. For my conversation with Eric. For the fact that you heard it."

"You didn't want me to?" Gil was hurt – if he hadn't have heard it, would she have hidden it from him?

"No – I'm sorry that it happened at all. He… He just pulled me aside in the hallway and… and asked me to come to dinner with him. I was… shocked. I didn't want you to hear it because I didn't want you to think anything of it," she paused and wrung her hands. "I—I don't want to lose you over some stupid miscommunication, and thought I had… Today, when I saw that you had heard… You just looked so hurt… Devastated. And to think that I had caused that…" her voice trailed off.

Gil stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tightly to him. "Sara… why don't you just tell me what happened with Eric when you lived here in San Francisco." Sara looked up at him with shining eyes and nodded solemnly. He let go of her and both lay down on the bed, Sara on her back and Gil facing her, his head propped up by his fist.

Sara took a deep breath. "Eric and I worked together in San Francisco, as you know. We began dating about three months after we met, and I moved in with him after about a year and a half." She paused and looked at him. "Then I went to this forensics convention and met this amazing guy. He was one of the speakers, and from the moment I set eyes on him I knew he was something special." Gil smiled. "After that week something definitely changed in our relationship because Eric didn't seem as great as he did before. I kept comparing him to this new guy and finding faults in him that I hadn't seen before." Sara sighed. "Two months later I was offered a job in Las Vegas by the guy I had met at the convention… I—I couldn't pass it up."

Sara rolled on her side to face Gil. "When I told Eric I was planning on moving the Vegas because of a job opportunity, he… He wasn't too happy about it, I guess you could say." Sara began fiddling with a button on Gil's shirt. "I remember him saying something about me moving there because of another guy… I—I didn't deny it, and that's when he found out."

"That's when he found out it really was about another guy?" Gil asked her, cupping her cheek in his hand.

"Yeah… And today, I guess he figured out that it was you."

Gil was silent for a moment; he looked around the room and then back at Sara. Then, slowly, he dipped his head and captured his lips with hers in a slow, languorous kiss. When he pulled away Sara had not yet opened her eyes, and she looked as if she as savoring the moment.

"Thank you," Gil told her as she finally looked at him again.

Sara cocked an eyebrow. "For…?"

"For telling me what happened. Thank you." He smiled at her and kissed her again, longer this time. "You're not going to go to dinner with Eric, are you?" Gil said, suddenly pulling away.

Sara laughed – God, it was good to hear that – and shook her head. "No. Definitely not. If I do, he'll think I want to get back together, and we don't want that."

"Poor guy. You never even gave him a second chance." Gil said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Well, I've moved on to better things." Sara replied sincerely.

Gil smiled again. He was glad he decided to come after all.


	6. Chapter 5

_Yay for the Season 8 premiere! I'm not going to spoil anything (hopefully :0P) but I personally think that it was the best episode of CSI so far._

_Thanks for reading!_

* * *

Gil woke with Sara wrapped in his arms again, her face buried in his neck. He listened to each breath she took, feeling more blessed with each one. Gil smiled as he thought of the previous night, of Sara's admission and his own forgiveness. He liked how much they trusted each other and hoped that wouldn't change. 

Gil had never known paradise, but if this wasn't it he sure that it was damn close.

Sara stirred and opened her eyes. Gil kissed her forehead. "Griss—"

"Shh…" he silenced her. "I'm going to take a shower."

"Here?" she asked, her voice still groggy with sleep.

"Yeah. You go back to sleep."

"But Ecklie…"

"I'll figure something out. Now go back to sleep." Sara moaned her complaint as Gil untangled himself from her and slid out of bed. He padded across the room and quietly opened the bathroom door, then shut it behind him and started the shower.

Gil looked at himself in the mirror and ran his fingers though his hair. _You're one lucky son-of-a-bitch_, he thought as he studied his reflection. Smiling, he felt the shower water, then stepped in. What seemed like moments later, someone was pulling back the shower curtain. Gil froze for a moment, then smiled as Sara stepped into the shower with him.

"I thought I told you to go back to sleep," Gil teased her as she ran her hands up his arms then circled them around his neck.

"Yeah, well I heard you were taking a shower and couldn't resist joining you."

Gil kissed her then reached for the shampoo.

"Here," Sara took the bottle from him, poured some shampoo into her hand and ran her fingers through his curls. He smiled at her and closed his eyes. He loved it when she washed his hair for him, and she knew that he did. Gil, with two now idle hands, moved them down to her hips and pulled her to him. Sara laughed, "You like that, don't you?" he moaned his response and commenced to suck on her neck. She laughed even louder. "Griss, I can't—" He picked her up and she squealed and wrapped her legs around his waist as he backed her into the shower wall.

He really did like it when she washed his hair for him.

Gil could smell breakfast before he could see it, and as he, Sara and Ecklie stepped into the small restaurant his stomach growled. After paying for an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet for three, they headed straight for the food.

They each grabbed a plate and started down the line. Gil immediately went for the bacon, and scooped a generous amount onto his plate.

"What do you think you're doing?" Sara's arms were folded across her chest and she had a no-nonsense look on her face. He frowned and looked down at his plate, but no sooner had Sara taken it from him and dumped the contents of it into the trash bin.

"Hey! That's my breakfast!" Gil frowned as Sara took his hand and led him down the table to where the fruit was. She got him a new plate and began scooping fruit onto it.

"No, this is your breakfast," she handed the fruit-filled plate to him and he wrinkled his nose, then narrowed his eyes at her playfully.

"What are you saying, Sara?" She laughed at his expression and cocked her eyebrow at him.

"Do you know how much Trans fats those things have?" she said, gesturing toward the meats. "They're horrible for you." Gil rolled his eyes as Sara filled her own plate with fruit, but noticed Ecklie staring at them from a few feet away and frowned. When Gil had returned to their shared room earlier that morning he had had to make up an excuse on the spot, and had mentioned something about waking up earlier, taking a shower and going for a walk. Or something along those lines. Gil wasn't even sure that Ecklie had bought it, and the scene he and Sara were making now was surely adding on to Ecklie's suspicion. He quickly averted his gaze and told Sara he was going to sit down in a low voice.

After they had all settled down at a table and had begun eating was when Ecklie had broached the subject of Gil's breakfast choice.

"You know, I had pictured you of more of a meat-eater, Gil," Ecklie told him.

"I'm… on a diet." Gil replied robotically, and commenced to gaze longingly at Ecklie's plate of bacon, sausage and eggs.

"Oh." Ecklie had obviously been expecting a more thorough response because he looked back and forth between him and Sara a few times. "Right." A moment of silence passed between them. "So I guess it's good that you and Sidle aren't living together," he added, and chuckled. For the second time in two days, Gil had to try his hardest not to look at Sara. Sara, on the other hand, chuckled along with Ecklie.

"Yeah, it is a good thing," she replied, and looked at Gil as if to indicate that he should laugh too. He did, and was relived to see that Ecklie bought it.

"Now that would be crazy." Ecklie chuckled again and went back to eating.

Sara shifted uncomfortably next to Gil. "So what do you think about the case, Ecklie?" she asked him, and took a bite of melon. It was obvious she wanted to change the subject. "I mean, it's technically not our job to solve it but Mason mentioned something about us helping with it, right?"

"Yes, he did, and I think it would be a good opportunity." Ecklie was still glancing between them. "What do you think about the suspects?"

"We don't have any strong evidence against either the maid or the boyfriend yet, so we can't be sure." Gil spoke up. Sara and Ecklie both nodded their agreement. There was more silence, then, as if not being able to stand it, Ecklie got up and mentioned something about using the bathroom.

He was gone in a second, and Gil took this opportunity to reach across the table and grab a piece of bacon, but Sara quickly slapped out of his hand.

"Are you seriously going to try and steal some of Ecklie's breakfast?" Sara said, scolding him.

"I—well—" he looked sadly at the forgotten piece of bacon and Sara speared a piece of melon on her fork.

"Here," she held it up to Gil's mouth and he rolled his eyes. Then, giving in, he opened his mouth and Sara fed him the piece of fruit. She smiled almost teasingly at him and he rolled his eyes again.

"You know I only do that because you're irresistible, right?" Gil whispered close to Sara's ear, and she smiled her response. He would have said more, but he noticed Ecklie striding back toward their table and pulled away from her.

They'd continue this conversation later.


	7. Chapter 6

_Here's Chapter 6! Sorry it's so short... I'll try to make them longer, but I really haven't had much time to write lately with school work. :(_

_Anyways, if you like it, let me know!_

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The San Francisco Crime Lab was no where near as nice as the one back in Las Vegas, and Gil was disappointed to see that he would not have all the equipment he was used to working with for entomological cases as he used back home. Mason immediately showed him, Sara and Ecklie to a small work room when they arrived at the lab. He then pointed out a shelf that had more than a dozen small glass jars on it, and upon closer inspection Gil realized that they were full of several different types of insects in different life stages.

"They're from Danica's body," Mason confirmed, "One of our CSIs took the samples earlier this morning."

"Thank you, detective," Gil replied, and picked one up to study it closer. He noticed a small piece of beef jerky that the bugs were feasting on, and smiled as he remembered the first time Sara had seen an insect-ridden corpse.

_"__Have you got any of that beef jerky you're always gnawing on?" Gil was crouched down next to the body, looking up amusedly at Sara's disgusted expression._

_"You can eat?" Gil smiled._

_"I want to keep these little fellas alive. They're our first witnesses to the crime."_

Gil was snapped back to reality as Mason and Ecklie left the room and he and Sara were left alone. She smiled at him. "Ready to get started?"

"Where'd Ecklie leave to?"

Sara frowned. "Didn't you hear? Mason is going to show him around the lab while we're working on the bug timeline. What? Do you miss him already?" Sara smiled at him again and turned back to the rows of jars stacked in front of them. "So what do we do first?" She asked him, and picked up a jar.

"Let's bring all the jars over to this table, first." They set them all on a table in front of a bulletin-board-looking-thing where Gil would tack the bugs up to study the timeline. "It looks like we have some adult blowflies, some in the pupa stages, and some… maggots."

Sara scrunched her nose up. "What made you want to become an entomologist?" she asked him as he handed her a tack.

"Ever since I was little," he unscrewed the lid of one jar and picked out an already-dead blowfly, "I loved bugs. I guess I'm not quite sure why, but they always fascinated me. Here—" Gil handed Sara the insect and then took both of her hands in his own, "Be gentle. You don't want to pierce it too hard or too fast, otherwise you'll just end up with bug pieces." He guided her hands together and they pierced the blowfly onto the tack. "Perfect." Gil smiled at Sara, then took the tack from her and stuck it onto the board.

They worked for hours, only taking a break when Ecklie and Mason stopped back in to see how they were doing. After they had constructed what seemed like a logical timeline on the bulletin board in front of them, Sara and Gil stepped back to admire their work.

"Looks good." Sara ran her hand down Gil's arm and slowly laced her fingers with his.

"Yeah, it does." Gil looked down at her and she up at him, and before he could stop himself, Gil dipped his mouth toward hers—

"Hey, Sara," someone said from the doorway, and Gil grunted as Sara shoved him away from her hard.

"Eric!" Sara looked almost as surprised to see him today as she did yesterday. "What are you doing here?"

Eric frowned. "I work here."

"Oh, um, yeah. Sorry." She was obviously flustered, and Gil was annoyed. Not only had Eric walked in at the only real close moment he and Sara had had since they arrived at the lab, but Sara had gone out of her way to make sure Eric didn't catch them. He rubbed the part on his chest where Sara had pushed him and frowned.

"I was coming to see how you two were doing… And it looks like you're done." Eric came to stand beside Sara to look up at the insect-covered bulletin board. "Good work. You're definitely much better than our usual guys." Eric smiled at Sara, and Gil's frown deepened. He knew that the compliment had been directed at both of them, but felt like all Eric could see was Sara. He sighed, resigned, and began to clean some of the jars up. He turned away from Eric and Sara and put them back on the shelf, trying to control his rising emotions.

"So, have you decided on dinner yet?" Gil froze as Eric whispered to Sara. He could feel Sara's eyes on his back and it took all his effort to keep putting the jars back on the shelf, pretending that he hadn't heard Eric.

"No, Eric, I don't think that's a good idea," Sara whispered back, apparently also believing that Gil had not heard. There was a short pause, and then—

"Ok, Babe. Call me if you change your mind. You have my number." Gil turned around just in time to see Eric wink at Sara and remove his hand from her lower back.

_Asshole._

"You have his number still?" Gil said wryly, almost scornfully, and went back to putting the jars away.

"No!" Sara said, too quickly. "I just… used to. You know."

"Yeah, I know." Gil knew he shouldn't feel this mad, or frustrated. But he did.

That damn Lachlan.


	8. Chapter 7

_So who else is excited for next week's CSI? I sure am... but I'm also really nervous about it! I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens, huh?_

_Thanks for reading, and as always I'd love it if you stopped to review. :)_

_A/N: I will not be posting another chapter for a few weeks - sorry for the inconvenience!_

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Gil was mad. Sure, he had entertained the idea of Sara being with other men before – at some points in time, he had had to. There had been Hank… Oh, how he had dispised that man. He remembered how he'd found out about Hank and Sara and the mere memory pierced through him like a knife to the chest. Sara had tried to hide it from him and he had he remembered the look of shock and embarrassment that crossed her features when Philip Gerard exposed their relationship.

There had been other men in Sara's life for the time Gil had known her, too – he was sure of that. But there had never been a man quite like Eric Lachlan. He and Sara had been closer than any other of Sara's boyfriends had, that much was obvious, but had she been in love with him? Gil shook the idea from his head: He couldn't bear to even think about that possibility.

Gil looked up at the San Franciscan night sky and sighed. He was leaning against his, Sara's and Ecklie's rented SUV out in the parking lot of the motel they were staying at. He'd been hoping to find some privacy and had resorted to this since there was no way he was staying in his room, and he didn't feel like dealing with Sara right now – or her sympathy.

Gil felt a migraine coming on – this always happened when he was frustrated – and closed his eyes against the dull ache in his head. A few moments had passed when Gil heard her voice. "Hey." Sara was only a few yards to his left and he subconsciously wondered why he had not heard her approach.

"Hey," he replied, and looked away. Gil heard her walk up and stand next to him, and he wondered not for the first time this trip what she was thinking. Did she know he was upset? Was she thinking about what happened today, too? He sighed and saw out of the corner of his eye Sara turn to look at him, as if she was trying to read his expression.

"You ok?" she kept her voice low, as if trying not to frighten him.

"Yes," he said, and knew she could see right through his lie. Sara didn't say anything for a few moments, though, and instead looked up at the sky as Gil had done just minutes before.

"You're still mad, aren't you?" She was obviously more observant when it came to his feelings than he had thought.

"I'm not mad, Sara. I'm frustrated. Maybe I'm jealous. I don't know." He sighed roughly and folded his arms across his chest.

"But… Why?" Gil could hear the confusion in her voice and was suddenly angry. Wasn't it obvious? This man – one of Sara's past lovers – comes out of nowhere and tries to woo Sara – _his_ Sara! And all under Gil's scrutinizing gaze.

"Because I—I—" but he couldn't find the words. Or maybe he knew exactly what he wanted to say, but couldn't. He didn't want to push Sara away any more than he had lately.

"Because you…" Sara searched his face; he could feel her eyes on him.

"Because I hate seeing other guys flirt with you, Sara. I always have. And to see this man that you used to be infatuated with try to _win your heart_ is infuriating."

"Why? Because you think I'll go running back to him?"

"Because…" he didn't know. He didn't know and he couldn't say. Gil just stared at Sara as realization swept over her delicate features.

"You don't trust me," she said in a small voice, and he could see the hurt in her eyes.

"No! Sara, I—I do," he replied quickly, but even questioned his own answer. Did he really? He trusted her with lots of things, but this was one of the things he had been afraid of when he had agreed to go on that first date with her… what he had been afraid of all along. What if she ran into the arms of another man once she realized how much better than him she could do? Did he really trust her fidelity to him?

"Why are you so worried about me and Eric? I already told you that there's nothing between us anymore." Sara was standing in front of Gil now, her arms folded across her chest.

"Because of the way you act around him, Sara." Gil knew his tone was too stern, but he could feel his anger rising and couldn't control it. "You should see yourself."

"Oh, really? What do I act like, Grissom?" she spat back.

"Like you can't wait to get him into bed with you." he said without thinking, and immediately regretted it when he heard her sharp intake of breath.

Sara stood, speechless before him for several long moments. "Is that what you really think?"

"I—I… No. I mean—"

"You know what? Save it. I don't want to hear it right now." Sara cut him off. She then turned and started to walk away, but stopped after a few paces and turned back toward him, "Since you obviously haven't realized it yet, I committed to this relationship for _you_, not him. I never expected to run into him here… If I had, I wouldn't have come." She paused and looked away, and when she looked back the anger and contempt that had held her gaze before was gone, and Gil winced at the hurt he saw that had taken its place. "And just so you know, I don't want to sleep with Eric. He's charming, sure, but he's not what I want." Sara let out a long breath and wrapped her arms around herself in an unconscious act of self-protection.

Gil stood there, unsure of what to do. They had been standing for several moments in silence, with Gil looking at his feet, when he heard Sara turn and walk away. He sighed after he knew she was gone and leaned back against the SUV, then pinched the bridge of his nose. He definitely had a migraine now.

Gil knew that he had never been good at relationships before, but he hadn't been aware of how easily he could screw them up.

Gil pushed himself off the SUV and started toward his own room. Tonight would be a long night.


End file.
